UN role in Iraq

When the U.S. forces launched their missiles against a number of targets in Iraq, the world was once again stunned by the arrogant attitude of the Americans who justified their attack by saying that it was part of measures designed to punish Iraq. According to the U.S., Iraq had violated the exclusion zone defined by the United Nations Security Council in the wake of the 1991 Gulf War.

It must be noted however that Saddam Hussein was actually trying to put down a rebellion by Kurds in an area located inside the exclusion zone in northern Iraq. The question is, does the U.S. have the right to intervene in Iraq's domestic affairs, even if it says it is acting on behalf of the UN Security Council?

As a sovereign nation,we prefer to respect Iraq's sovereignty. Although we know that Iraq is using force against the Kurdish rebels in northern Iraq, it does not mean that we can pronounce our judgment on Iraq. We must leave it to them to resolve their internal problems since we, too, would not like to see others meddle in our domestic affairs.

It seems that we should call on the UN to act more decisively to resolve the various crises that are plaguing that part of the world and not leave it to a superpower to carry out this task. That would imply a lack of authority on the part of the world body, which would be most regrettable.

-- Bisnis Indonesia, Jakarta